Obama Travels to Hollywood, First Quarter of Fund-Raising Highlights and More in Capital Eye Opener: April 20

Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:

MR. OBAMA GOES TO HOLLYWOOD: President Barack Obama hopes to raise $1 billion for his 2012 re-election campaign, and he is traveling to a staunchly blue neighborhood to get started: Hollywood.

“What has not materialized … is a sense that showbizzers will be looking elsewhere,” writes Ted Johnson in Variety, despite public comments from prominent movie stars that criticize Obama for not being progressive enough. Matt Damon and Barbra Streisand, for example, are known to be vocal critics of the president.

Obama will attend a fund-raising rally on Thursday with a capacity for 3,000 people and tickets selling from $100 to $2,500. Later, he will attend a more intimate dinner with 60 donors attending. Those tickets cost a whopping $35,800 each.

“The president is expected to go from table to table to spend face time with donors,” writes Johnson. A second dinner with different donors will follow.

Despite disillusion, Obama may simply raise significant funds by default according to Variety: “The lack of a Democratic or third-party alternative, and a Republican field that could very well veer even further to the right, will only bolster Obama’s prospects, say his longtime supporters.”

A Democrat-friendly Hollywood is hardly a box office surprise.

In March, a Center for Responsive Politicsanalysis revealed that Oscar nominees were almost exclusively supportive of Democrats and other left-leaning politicians and causes. In fact, the 2011 Oscar nominees’ campaign cash benefited Democrats or left-leaning groups 99 percent of the time.

The 2010 Oscars were a slightly paler shade of blue, but Democrats still dominated. About 87 percent benefited Democrats or other identifiably left-leaning causes, while only 2 percent went to Republicans.

Of course, the last two years reveal that being a prolific political donor does notequal winning the golden statue.

As a whole, Hollywood and Beverly Hills, Calif., are very favorable fund-raising grounds for Democrats whatever the political climate.

During the 2010 election cycle — with politically devastating or “shellacking” results for Democrats — Zip codes making up Hollywood raised a total of $1.49 million, of which $1.44 million, or nearly 97 percent, benefited Democrats.

Zip codes making up Beverly Hills were only a little more bipartisan during the 2010 election cycle. Residents raised nearly $6.4 million in federally reportable cash during the 2010 election cycle. Democrats received more than $5.27 million, or about 82 percent.

FIRST QUARTER OF FUND-RAISING’S ROUNDUP: Didn’t we just have an election? Citizens may not be voting anytime soon, but there’s certainly money moving around even if the next major federal elections are 566 (and counting!) days away.

During the first quarter of this year, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) raised the most money of any member of Congress, according to Roll Call. His $2.4 million haul was helped by a $760,000 transfer from his Boehner for Congress group.

Another winner of the first quarter was outspoken Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.). As OpenSecrets Blog reported this weekend, she raised more than $1.7 million during the first three months of 2011, prompting Smart Politics to boldly predict her raising an eye-popping $52 million haul for the entire 2012 election cycle.

If a $1.7 million first quarter total is 3.3 percent of her entire haul, Smart Politics reasons, then $52 million would be an appropriate prediction.

This is all assuming the Minnesota a congresswoman doesn’t run for president. Then $52 million would be mere change for a presidential candidate, as some White House hopefuls are expected to raise nine-figure amounts in pursuit of the nation’s top office.

While high-profile Republicans Boehner and Bachmann brought in the dough, freshman Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) threw an extravagant fund-raiser that brought in only $650.

The star-studded event in January even brought in country singer LeAnn Rimes. “Between assorted fees, flowers, catering and other costs, Denham’s special fundraising committee reported spending $212,250 on the Rimes event. The committee, meanwhile, raised only $212,900 from outside contributors,” reported McClatchy.

The DCCC spent between $40 and $400 on small advertisements, targeting 25 Republicans for their stances on Medicare.

The small totals prompted an American Crossroads press release, which scoffed, “For the DCCC’s next major initiative, we hear they plan to hand out balloons and refrigerator magnets in northwestern Pennsylvania.”

Of course, both American Crossroads and the DCCC are major players in the world of money in politics, though they differ in that American Crossroads is an independent organization and the DCCC is a party committee.

During the 2010 election cycle, American Crossroads spent nearly $17 million in opposition to Democrats running for political office and more than $4.2 million supporting Republicans. As OpenSecrets Blog has previously reported, American Crossroads spent an impressive $22 million during the 2010 election cycle.

The organization also announced its intention to raise $120 million during the 2012 election cycle, as OpenSecrets Blog has also noted.

But the DCCC is hardly the David to American Crossroads’ goliath. The party committee — a major source of campaign cash and support for Democratic House members — spent more than $163.5 million during the 2010 elections, according to Center research. During the 2008 election cycle it spent more than $176.5 million.

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